Changing Minds exhibit

The Indiana Historical Society invites guests to once again step back in time and be a part of history in its newest Indiana Experience offering, You Are There 1939: Healing Bodies, Changing Minds, which opens to the public Nov. 13, 2012, and will be available until Jan. 25, 2014. The Eugene and Marilyn Glick Indiana History Center, home of the IHS and the Indiana Experience, is located at 450 W. Ohio St. in downtown Indianapolis.

Join African-American physician Dr. Harvey Middleton on June 24, 1939, in his office at 2101 Boulevard Place for an open house that is being used to introduce family, friends, colleagues and the broader community to the latest in electrocardiographic technology.

While offering essential access to medical assistance to patients who may otherwise have gone without, Dr. Middleton was also pursuing learning opportunities. While doing everything he could to improve the level of health care for his community, he also worked to gain the knowledge and skills that would eventually establish him as one of Indianapolis’ leading cardiologists.

Check out Dr. Middleton’s consulting room, from his cardiette machine and physician’s license to the examining table and anatomical charts. Ask Dr. Middleton about his upcoming trip to London for further training, the exciting news he received last week, or how he and others are working to make Indianapolis a better place for all its citizens.

Talk with Ollie Mae Middleton, Dr. Middleton’s sister, about what it is like to be a nurse as well as what it was like to live and work in Indianapolis during the Great Depression. You may also meet Dr. Henry Hummons, a local physician who played a key role in the health of the black community – including an ongoing problem with tuberculosis. Roselyn Richardson, newlywed wife of prominent lawyer Henry J. Richardson, may share how she plans to become active in her new community. Ask local chiropodist (foot doctor) Sarah Tyree how she is involved with health and social issues important to women in her community, or talk to Russell Lane about his work with local students as principal of Crispus Attucks High School.

Outside of the recreated space, a content area shares information about Dr. Middleton’s many accomplishments achieved later in his life, as well as a cardiette machine he actually owned and used. Visitors can also learn more about heart health, healthcare access and disparity, and more. Small displays can also be found throughout the History Center about Hoosiers who worked for civil rights prior to the movement of the 1950s and 1960s.

You Are There 1955: Healing Bodies, Changing Minds is presented by Advantage Health and Franciscan St. Francis Health Network, with support from the Marion County Public Health Department, the Aesculapian Medical Society and the Indiana State Medical Association. For information on IHS or the Indiana Experience, call (317) 232-1882 or visit www.indianahistory.org.